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arun wrote:All three of the Mohammadden majority “Four Fathers” aka “Fore Fathers” of the Mohammadden Terrorism Fomenting Islamic Republic of Pakistan interact with our Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the same day ie: 11th March via phone and face to face meeting .

saip wrote:Looks like the brain dead FM of Pakistan is complaining about the caps worn by Indian cricketers in ODI to ICC.Link

Shah Mehmood Quresh is not the only Minister from the Mohammadden Terrorism Fomenting Islamic Republic of Pakistan who has got his shalwar in a twist over the cap worn by the Indian cricket team. Fawad Ahmed Chaudhry aka Fawad Hussain Chaudhry, Minister for Information and Broadcasting was also grumbling about the Indian cricket teams choice of head gear on twitter. In any event the ICC can do bugger all about wearing camouflage pattern cap with the BCCI crest and Nike’s corporate logo in a “non white” attire wearing ODI match.

“It’s just not Cricket”, I hope ICC ll take action for politicising Gentleman’s game ... if Indian Cricket team ll not be stopped, Pak Cricket team should wear black bands to remind The World about Indian atrocities in Kashmir... I urge #PCB to lodge formal protest

Peeved editorial in mainstream English language newspaper published in the Mohammadden Terrorism Fomenting Islamic Republic of Pakistan, Dawn, regards the discovery that the thunder and fire of the Pakistan Cricket Board’s protest letter at the Indian Cricket Team wearing camouflage caps in support of Indian Security Forces gunned down by Islamic Terrorist Groups supported by Pakistan, had been rendered inconsequential as so much porcine excrement given that the BCCI had obtained the prior sanction of the ICC .

Disingenuous of the Mohammadden Terrorism Fomenting Islamic Republic of Pakistan of getting their shalwars in a twist and ranting that this was a “blatant politicisation” of sport given its track record of boycotting the 1980 Moscow Olympics for political reasons and not to mention Apartheid Era South Africa in line with the ICC cricketing ban and the Commonwealth’s Gleneagles Agreement on banning sporting ties with Apartheid Era South Africa.

Besides above, the Mohammadden Terrorism Fomenting Islamic Republic of Pakistan, and any Attari candle kissing mombattiwallahs on our side, should note that the ICC has permitted the wearing of specialist attire in memory of fallen service men as was the case with the wearing of the Khadi Poppy in honour of Indian Soldiers killed during World War I (India, England cricket teams unite to unveil Khadi poppy in UK) as recently as September 2018.

May the phenomena of “leniency towards other violations by Indian players (recall ‘Monkeygate’) in general, is indicative of India’s ever-growing influence over the world of cricket” continue to grow and expand to many more areas beyond the “world of cricket” .

Excerpts from the Dawn Editorial:

IT was the wrong call for the International Cricket Council to make. On Monday, the ICC’s spokesperson revealed that it had granted the Board of Control for Cricket in India’s request to allow Indian cricketers to wear army camouflage-style caps during a recent ODI, a stunt that sparked controversy over the weekend as Pakistani government and cricket officials rightly criticised this blatant politicisation of the game.

The ICC explicitly prohibits any form of attire that conveys messages “political, religious or racial” in nature. ………………..

That the ICC authorised this spectacle, in clear violation of its own rules, when it has previously reprimanded cricketers for far more minor dress code violations, as well as shown leniency towards other violations by Indian players (recall ‘Monkeygate’) in general, is indicative of India’s ever-growing influence over the world of cricket. It is an ingress that has led to an imbalance in how the ICC arbitrates in such issues. ……………………..

ramana wrote:Peregrine How are the insurance rates for shipping to Karachi? Compare one month to now.1x to yX.

ramana Ji :

The usual groups are not aware of any War Risk Insurance Tariffs being imposed for Karachi.

Will let you know if/when WRI for Karachi is imposed.

Cheers

But demurrage has gone through the roof! Their refinery infra is horrid, first hand source tells me that storage tanks would pop at the sound of a firecracker. Refinery output was less than 55% in the first week of Feb, it won't be long before war risk surcharge is imposed in the ball park area of $200/20ft container.

Nearly 400 people had a narrow escape on Wednesday as Pakistani troops targeted the Trade Facilitation Centre at Chakkan Da Bagh along the Line of Control in Jammu and Kashmir’s Poonch district. Several government civil servants, police and immigration officials, labourers and cross LoC traders were present inside the facility at the time of the attack.

Shelling from the Pakistan side of the border began at around 10.45 am when a mortar shell fell near a bridge outside the trade Centre. This was followed by two more shells falling within the premises of the trade centre.

People from both sides of the LoC were involved in trade when the mortar shelling began, a senior police official said. “A few minutes before the shelling, a total of 34 trucks from Indian side had gone to Pakistan occupied Kashmir. In return, the Indian side had received 31 trucks from PoK,” the officer said.

As the shelling was underway, the Indian trucks were stranded on the PoK side. Similarly, the trucks that came from PoK were held up on the Indian side, the police officer said.

However, there was no loss of life or damage to property as the custodian of cross LoC trade, Fareed Kohli, and Deputy Superintendent Azim Qureshi had asked people to vacate the trade centre soon after the shelling began.

Meanwhile, Pakistani troops were resorting to mortar shelling on civilian areas along the LoC in nearby Khari Karmara area of Poonch as well. The Indian army was retaliating.

The usual groups are not aware of any War Risk Insurance Tariffs being imposed for Karachi.

Will let you know if/when WRI for Karachi is imposed.

Cheers

mmasand wrote:But demurrage has gone through the roof! Their refinery infra is horrid, first hand source tells me that storage tanks would pop at the sound of a firecracker. Refinery output was less than 55% in the first week of Feb, it won't be long before war risk surcharge is imposed in the ball park area of $200/20ft container.

mmasand Ji : Many thanks for the information. Now await further "GOOD NEWS" - Especially the WRI on Premium Vessels like Tankers and LNG Carriers- particularly those berthed in Karachi and Port Bin Qasim for Re-gasification of LNG.

Pakistan's military is taking a key role in the development of one of the world's biggest untapped copper and gold deposits, which is currently stalled by a multibillion dollar legal wrangle with foreign mining firms, multiple sources familiar with the situation said.

The Reko Diq mine has become a test case for Prime Minister Imran Khan's ability to attract serious foreign investment to Pakistan as it struggles to stave off an economic crisis that has forced it to seek an International Monetary Fund bailout.

Ten current and former provincial and federal government officials and mining sources familiar with the project in the Baluchistan region say the military has become the most important voice on the future of Reko Diq, which it sees as a strategic national asset.

The military will not only be in a position to decide which investors develop the deposit, but an army-controlled engineering firm, Frontier Works Organization (FWO), is positioning itself to be a member of any consortium involved, these people said.

"This has been taken over by GHQ," said a senior Baluchistan government official, referring to the Pakistan army's General Headquarters in the garrison city of Rawalpindi.

In a statement in response to Reuters' questions about its role in Reko Diq, the military spokesman's office said: "(The military) may only participate in government's plan of development of Reko Diq, as per national requirements."

But it acknowledged that FWO, best known for building roads through Pakistan's rugged and lawless border regions, has developed "substantial" mining capability in recent years and would be interested in taking a role in the project.

"If an opportunity arises of participating in developing Reko Diq, FWO may work at par with other competitors (or) companies provided the project is financially viable (or) suitable," the statement said. When asked, a spokesman declined to elaborate on the statement.

Pakistan's Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry said civilian authorities in the insurgency-hit southwestern province of Baluchistan were in charge of Reko Diq and, along with Khan, would take a decision, but added that the military "and all other stakeholders are obviously important players".

FWO referred questions to the military spokesman's office. Khan's spokesman Iftikhar Durrani said Baluchistan province was in charge of Reko Diq, and referred questions to the provincial government and the military spokesman's office.

The manoeuvring behind the project shows how the military, which has historically dictated Pakistan's security and foreign policy, is leveraging its sway over the civilian government at federal and provincial level to carve a growing role in the nation's business affairs.

The army has ruled the nuclear-armed nation for nearly half its history and is considered to have a major influence over Khan's recently elected government. A military spokesman declined to comment.

"The military has taken a front seat," said Ayesha Siddiqa, author of the book "Military Inc.", which analyses the army's business interests and influence in Pakistan. "They've understood that the economy is important for having a strong military," she said. "Control of the economy also gives the military a handle over expanding their business interests."

Buried at the foot of an extinct volcano near the frontier with Iran and Afghanistan, the mine's development has long been delayed by a dispute with previous investors in the project, Canada's Barrick Gold and Chile's Antofagasta.

The government is urgently trying to settle the dispute as a World Bank arbitration tribunal, which ruled against Pakistan in 2017, is in the next few months expected to announce how much in damages the country must pay to the foreign firms, who are claiming more than $11 billion. The dispute relates to the withholding of a mining lease. Islamabad is also trying to find new partners to invest in the project.

But any new investors will need the blessing of Pakistan's military, according to government officials and mining sources. State-run companies from resource-hungry China have long coveted Reko Diq and more recently Saudi Arabia has shown interest, according to Pakistani officials.

Some Western diplomats say the Reko Diq dispute has been a significant foreign investment deterrent, with international businesses unnerved at how Pakistan dealt with the companies that had pledged to invest $3.3 billion to develop the country's then-biggest mining project.

Barrick Gold and Antofagasta, whose joint venture Tethyan Copper Company (TCC) discovered vast mineral wealth in Reko Diq, say they had invested more than $220 million by the time the Baluchistan government, in 2011, unexpectedly refused to grant them the critical mining lease needed to keep operating.

Pakistan argued its move was legitimate because TCC's feasibility study was incomplete and the country's Supreme Court voided the deal in 2013. But in 2017 the World Bank's International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) ruled against Pakistan.

TCC did not respond to requests for comment and Antofagasta and Barrick Gold both declined to comment. Reuters could not determine whether either company would be willing to return to the project.

FOREIGN INVESTORS

The last serious attempt at settling the Reko Diq case was scuppered in 2016 by the military, which vetoed paying hundreds of millions of dollars to TCC, according to a senior Baluchistan official and two former senior officials in Islamabad.

But the military has since changed its stance and is more open to a settlement with TCC, according to a lawmaker close to the military and a source close to Prime Minister Khan. The military was also involved in appointing Pakistan's current legal team.

In response to a Reuters question about blocking the previous settlement effort, the military said: "Let's see how the case progresses." It did not elaborate or comment on whether it was playing any role in the latest negotiations.

Some mining experts say a likely solution would be for a new investment consortium to pay the settlement fee on behalf of cashstrapped Pakistan in exchange for future royalty fees or mining rights.

Information Minister Chaudhry said Pakistan was engaged in negotiations with "both" the current investors about a settlement and also potential new investors, with interest coming from the Middle East and Europe. He declined to name the potential investors.

Pakistani Finance Minister Asad Umar said in October that Saudi Arabia has inquired about investing in Reko Diq and another government official confirmed talks were ongoing.

Saudi Arabia did not respond to a Reuters request for comment on Reko Diq. During Crown Prince bin Salman's visit to Pakistan last month, the kingdom pledged to invest $2 billion in mineral development projects, though the provisional agreements were vague and did not mention any specific projects.

China's state-owned miner China Metallurgical Group Corporation (MCC), which operates the Saindak copper and gold mine close to Reko Diq, has been eyeing the bigger deposit for more than a decade, according to mining and MCC officials.

A few years ago Chinese state giant Norinco also made an approach, according to two sources familiar with Norinco's offer. MCC and Norinco did not respond to requests for comment.

When a mining company approached former general Abdul Quadir Baloch about Reko Diq around 2016, when he was federal minister could not be reached for comment.

The army-run FWO does not have the funds or the expertise to develop the Reko Diq project, which boasts 5.9 billion tons of ore. But it could be part of a consortium alongside global miners who have the know-how to mine such a gargantuan deposit.

The military's role in developing natural resources in Baluchistan also carries risks, however, analysts say.

Indigenous Baloch people view outsiders with suspicion, and their anger about Islamabad exploiting the province's vast natural resources has been one of the key themes fuelling a separatist insurgency that began around 2004.

Diabetes mellitus is a chronic health problem of all age groups, both gender, involves rural and urban areas and developing and developed countries globally. The aim of this study was to assess the prevalence of type 2 diabetes mellitus in Pakistan. Systematic bibliographic search of scientific databases including PubMed, ISI-web of science and Google Scholar was conducted with key words of "type 2 diabetes mellitus" "prevalence", "incidence", "occurrence". A total of 22 peer reviewed papers published in ISI and PubMed indexed journals were selected and examined. All the epidemiologic and experimental studies reporting the diabetes prevalence in Pakistan were included. Lastly, we analyzed 18 publications and remaining 04 papers were excluded. The current prevalence of type 2 diabetes mellitus in Pakistan is 11.77%. In males the prevalence is 11.20% and in females 9.19%. The mean prevalence in Sindh province is 16.2% in males and 11.70 % in females; in Punjab province it is 12.14% in males and 9.83% in females. In Baluchistan province 13.3% among males, 8.9% in females; while in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KPK) it is 9.2% in males and 11.60% in females. The prevalence of type 2 diabetes mellitus in urban areas is 14.81% and 10.34% in rural areas of Pakistan. The prevalence of type 2 diabetes mellitus in Pakistan is11.77%. The prevalence is higher in males than females and more common in urban areas compared to the rural areas. Pakistan must include diabetes preventive measures in their national health policy to minimize the burden of the disease.

Following the 9/11 attacks and the identification of Al Qaeda as the perpetrator, US military planners began preparations for a retaliatory strike. The Taliban regime in Afghanistan supported Al Qaeda in various ways and thus its downfall became the first objective in the US response. Unlike in Europe, Southwest Asia, or Northeast Asia, however, the US lacked bases within easy reach of the landlocked Central Asian country of Afghanistan. Planners faced the challenge not only of finding bases from which strike aircraft could operate but that also could support special operations fixed- and rotary- wing aircraft and combat rescue helicopters. Despite the presence of pro-Taliban, Islamist groups in his own country, President Pervez Musharraf of Pakistan offered the US basing rights at several locations. The largest and most important of these was the Pakistani air base at Jacobabad, Shahbaz AB. Designed as an F-16 base with hardened aircraft shelters, and located 300 miles southeast of Kandahar, Afghanistan, the base was within reach for USAF Special Operations Forces (SOF) and Combat Search and Rescue (CSAR) assets staging from within the CENTCOM Area of Responsibility (AOR).

As occurred at other locations, and not in accordance with doctrine, “iron flowed before BOS [base operating support].” That is, aircraft and operators deployed before the engineers and the support personnel that were required to establish a forward base. By 29 October when USAF civil engineer Maj Jeff Perham arrived at ‘J-bad’ — as Jacobabad was dubbed — there was already a problem of “standing raw sewage” just outside the main hangar that housed some 400 deployed SOF members. Lacking support personnel to set up the latrines that comprised part of the USAF deployed housekeeping package known as “Harvest Falcon” (only a portion of those assets had arrived), the Americans were using toilets in a ‘lean -to’ attached to the hangar that flowed to a Pakistani-style septic tank. The tank soon reached its capacity, and sewage began coming through the stack vents. The situation made for a serious health hazard heightened by the presence of malaria mosquitoes feared to carry encephalitis. One of

Perham’s first actions was to spread lime on the affected area and cover it with dirt, thereby helping to decontaminate the area as well as diffusing some of the odor. Lt Col Allen B. Robinson, whose Ohio Air National Guard (ANG) civil engineer squadron arrived in November and performed the bulk of the beddown, added larvacide donuts to reduce the mosquito population.

Unfortunately, raw sewage and mosquitoes were not the only health hazards at J- bad. By late October 2001, US personnel were suffering the effects of contaminated water. As Major Perham stated, Our primary water source was an overhead fill stand outside the US compound, and before we got a water truck we were using the fire trucks to grab 1,000 gallons at a time and put it in various bladders. . . . but . . . weren’t chlorinating them. When I got there, the entire population had a rash from bathing in water that was obviously contaminated. There was fecal coliform in the water, so everyone had a red rash around their elbows and joints.

Perham credited TSgt Dave Keeley, an extremely knowledgeable ‘RED HORSE’ “water guy,” with identifying the problem and starting to chlorinate [treat] the water. Keeley set up the Reverse Osmosis Water Purification Unit (ROWPU), tested the now-chlorinated [treated] water, and, according to Perham, “it was fine.”

Contamination issues notwithstanding, the greatest single challenge to the US ‘beddown’ was the need to raise the site’s elevation by abouttwo feet. At one time, the area surrounding J-bad had been rice fields. Although roadways in the area were elevated, surrounding fields had poor drainage and consisted of a deep, silty mud. Local Pakistani Air Force leaders were very accommodating and offered the Americans a site not requiring much ‘fill’ work (i.e., gravel), but it was located near the base perimeter, making it a security concern. Close to 200,000 Pakistanis lived outside J-bad, some of whom were pro-Taliban in sentiment. Prudently, the US leadership wanted to reduce the Americans’ visibility on the base and thus selected a beddown site that, although more secure, required twice as much build-up in elevation as did the other.

Little did the Americans realize the limited ‘fill’ capacity of local contractors. Major Perham estimated a need for 1,200 loads of fill based on 5-cubic yard trucks for the initial beddown— and that was only for one Harvest Falcon set designed for 1,100 personnel. The contract was awarded through the American Embassy in Islamabad and a few days later the fill material was ready “to start flowing.” Perham explained: We were expecting a dozen trucks or so on the first day. . . . about 6:00 pm, when it was dark, the runner came from the Pakistani liaison cell and said our trucks were there. . . . We went out to the gate and there was one truck, and it looked like a circus truck. . . . It was not a dump truck in any way.

Two guys with shovels off-loaded that one truck. The next day we got another truckload during the day, so I took a photograph of the side of the truck with all the orna-mentation. . . . I put it on a PowerPoint slide and sent it to [Lieutenant] Colonel [Dave] Nelson. I said, ‘Sir, this shows you what our problem is. We need 1,200 loads of fill. Yesterday we got one; today we got one. This is the capability.’

Differences related to economics, culture, or both, contributed to the frustrations of the Americans. When US officials rented additional vehicles and attempted to turn them over to the contractor for hauling the gravel, they were told that Pakistani law required tasks to be accomplished in a way that provided employment for the maximum number of people. They would not be permitted to take advantage of the trucks to increase efficiency. Despite all the challenges, ten days later the contractor had increased his gravel deliveries to 15 trucks a day. Lieutenant Colonel Robinson, who served as deputy base commander as well as the Base Civil Engineer (BCE), recalled that J-bad eventually was receiving “50 or 60 trucks a day.” Little by little, the American beddown site at J-bad, took shape—and supported SOF and CSAR operations by USAF assets as Operation Enduring Freedom unfolded in Afghanistan.

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has not been able to secure $3.2 billion oil on deferred payments facility from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) – a major development which may again bring under stress official foreign currency reserves that have so far been maintained with help of friendly countries.

“Most probably, the UAE oil facility agreement will not materialise,” Finance Minister Asad Umar on Wednesday confirmed to The Express Tribune. But he hastily added that the government has made alternative arrangements to meet its external financing needs for this fiscal year.

The reasons for cancellation of the $3.2 billion oil facility by the UAE could not be immediately ascertained. Last month, the UAE had also postponed a scheduled meeting of the Joint Ministerial Commission.

The $3.2 billion oil facility was part of the $6.2 billion that the UAE had announced to give to Pakistan in December to help the country passing through difficult economic times. The UAE has already transferred $2 billion cash into the coffers of the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) and another $1 billion was expected very soon.

During the visit of UAE crown prince, Pakistani authorities had hoped that the crown prince would announce the $3.2 billion credit oil facility following the same model of Saudi Arabia. Later on, the February deadline was given that was also missed.

It will be a setback for the Finance Ministry that had declared fully bridging the financing gap on back of $14.5 billion financial support from the UAE, Saudi Arabia and China. So far, only Saudi Arabia has given $3 billion in cash and its oil facility on deferred payments has also been finalised.

The development came amid a delay in finalisation of an agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The negotiations with the IMF are continued since October last year. Two ($2) billion dollar loans are also expected from China next week, said the Finance Ministry that tried to downplay the cancellation of $3.2 billion UAE oil facility.

The $3.2 billion UAE oil facility was expected to take the pressure off from the foreign exchange market besides stabilising the official foreign currency reserves. Pakistan arranged $3 billion cash from Saudi Arabia at 3.2% interest rate. The UAE cash support has been secured for a period of two years at an interest rate of 3%, according to a written reply that Asad Umar submitted in the Senate last week.

The official foreign currency reserves stood at $8.1 billion as of end of last week that is inclusive of Saudi Arabian, Chinese and UAE cash assistance.

“The International Islamic Trade Finance Corporation (ITFC) deferred facility has already been operationalised, which will offset any impact of a delay or non-availability of the UAE facility,” said Dr Khaqan Najeeb, adviser and spokesperson of the Ministry of Finance. He said the government has worked diligently to ensure that $1 billion of the ITFC will be utilised in this fiscal year.

The spokesperson said $3.2 billion Saudi oil deferred facility was being operationalised and all relevant agreements were in place. In addition, adequate financing was in place for current fiscal year and beyond, said Dr Najeeb.

The government continues to follow a multipronged strategy to ensure continued stability in the country’s balance of payment (BOP) position. The strategy has included attracting more foreign direct investment, sale of assets and bilateral and multilateral flows, said Dr Khaqan Najeeb.

He said as part of this strategy, all the maturing short-term commercial loans have either been refinanced or rolled over, which will help keep the pressure off from the reserves. It is assumed that the country’s net foreign exchange reserves are negative by close to $10 billion.

Asad Umar on Wednesday did not disclose the exact figures of Net International Reserves (NIR) held by the SBP. While responding to a question during a meeting of the National Assembly Standing Committee on Finance, the finance minister said when the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government came into power, “We were effectively at default stage but I will not share further details.”

To a question about slow disbursement from multilateral creditors especially from the World Bank, Umar said the delay in disbursement was an issue but measures have been taken to address the root causes. He said the policy loans from international creditors were suspended from the period of the last regime because of insufficient foreign currency reserves.

The Finance Ministry spokesman said the government has also launched Pakistan Banao Certificate, a first ever retail offering to Pakistanis abroad that will help raise money for balance of support. He said the government is also working on diversifying its investor base through issuance of a Panda bond.

Pakistan and the IMF negotiations remain inconclusive despite the urgency due to lack of external financing in the next fiscal year, starting from July.

Asad Umar said the IMF is demanding free float of exchange rate but the government wants to move ahead towards this objective in a phased manner. “The timing and pace of adjustments on flexible exchange rate was a matter of difference but now the differences have narrowed down,” he said.

The minister said increasing inflationary pressures is a big worry for the government as stabilisation under the IMF programme would require adjustments. He feared that the people will have to go through the pain as a result of these adjustments.

The development could again bring under stress Pakistan's foreign currency reserves that have so far been maintained with help of friendly countries, the report said.

But Umar said the government has made alternative arrangements to meet its external financing needs for this fiscal year.

The reasons for cancellation of the $3.2 billion oil facility by the UAE could not be immediately ascertained, the report said while noting that the UAE had also postponed a scheduled meeting of the Joint Ministerial Commission last month. the report said.

During the visit of Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Pakistani authorities had hoped that he would announce the UAE credit oil facility following the same model of Saudi Arabia. Later, the February deadline was given that was also missed, the report said.

It will be a setback for the finance ministry that had declared fully bridging the financing gap on back of $14.5 billion financial support from the UAE, Saudi Arabia and China, the report said.

So far, only Saudi Arabia has given $3 billion in cash and its oil facility on deferred payments has also been finalised.

The development on the UAE front came amid a delay in finalisation of an agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the report said.Umar said the IMF is demanding free float of exchange rate but the government wants to move ahead towards this objective in a phased manner."The timing and pace of adjustments on flexible exchange rate was a matter of difference but now the differences have narrowed down," he said.

The negotiations with the IMF are continuing since October last year. China is also expected to provide $2 billion dollars as loan next week, said the finance ministry that tried to downplay the cancellation of the UAE oil facility.

The $3.2 billion UAE oil facility was expected to take the pressure off from the foreign exchange market besides stabilising the official foreign currency reserves.

Pakistan arranged the $3 billion cash from Saudi Arabia at 3.2 per cent interest rate. The UAE cash support has been secured for a period of two years at an interest rate of 3 per cent, according to a written reply that Asad Umar submitted in the Senate last week.

Pakistan's foreign currency reserves stood at $8.1 billion as of end of last week that is inclusive of Saudi Arabian, Chinese and UAE cash assistance.

The government continues to follow a multipronged strategy to ensure continued stability in the country's balance of payment (BOP) position. The strategy has included attracting more foreign direct investment, sale of assets and bilateral and multilateral flows, said Dr Khaqan Najeeb, adviser and spokesperson of the ministry of finance.

He said as part of this strategy, all the maturing short-term commercial loans have either been refinanced or rolled over, which will help keep the pressure off from the reserves.

It is assumed that Pakistan's net foreign exchange reserves are negative by close to $10 billion, the report said.

Finance Minister Umar on Wednesday did not disclose the exact figures of Net International Reserves (NIR) held by the SBP, the country's apex bank.Responding to a question during a meeting of the National Assembly Standing Committee on Finance, he said when the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf government came into power in August, "We were effectively at default stage but I will not share further details.

ISLAMABAD: Consumers, already reeling from a rise in inflation, should brace for another 41% hike in gas prices from the next financial year beginning July 1, 2019.

Already, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government had increased gas prices by up to 143% last year and revised consumer slabs, which resulted in inflated bills. As controversy built over the inflated bills, Prime Minister Imran Khan later directed public gas utilities to reimburse the amount to 3.2 million consumers.

The Pakistani rupee is likely to depreciate further as the utilities have been given the go-ahead to calculate gas prices on the basis of exchange rate of Rs180 against the US dollar to determine their revenue requirement for the next financial year 2019-20.

The Petroleum Division was given the permission to calculate gas prices on the basis of the higher exchange rate. Economic decision makers, in a recent meeting, gave approval for increasing consumer prices to meet revenue requirement of the gas utilities.

The Petroleum Division presented, in a meeting of the Economic Coordination Committee (ECC), the position of Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited (SNGPL) and Sui Southern Gas Company (SSGC) on revenue requirement, revenue generation and shortfall in 2018-19 and 2019-20.

It was stated that the projected revenue shortfall for the two utilities would be Rs75 billion and Rs156 billion for 2018-19 and 2019-20 respectively. It was further informed that 90% of the revenue requirement comprised the cost of gas, which was dollar-based and, therefore, the revenue calculation was made keeping in view the exchange rate.

On that basis, it was suggested that a 41% hike in gas prices was required to meet the shortfall in revenue requirement of the two companies.

During the meeting, the economic decision makers noted that the exchange rate of Rs180 was quite higher as the rupee would not depreciate to such an extent during financial year 2019-20.

The meeting was informed that by adopting the exchange rate of Rs150 per US dollar, the revenue shortfall would come down.

The Petroleum Division submitted the plan for financial sustainability of the gas sector during 2019-20. The revenue requirement for financial year 2019-20 is to be determined by the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (Ogra).

According to the Petroleum Division’s assessment, the revenue requirement of financial year 2019-20 would be Rs594 billion, projected sales revenue would be Rs437 billion and shortfall would be Rs156 billion.

It was of the view that the increase in gas sale prices would be 41% from July 1, 2019. However, Ogra will determine prices for financial year 2019-20 by mid-May.

Ogra will need to review all previous revenue shortfalls separately up to June 30, 2018 and for the remaining financial year 2018-19.

The Petroleum Division asked the ECC to direct Ogra to consider the presumed exchange rate of Rs180 against the dollar for its projections for the next financial year. It emphasised that approval by the ECC and cabinet should be given by the end of June 2019.

The ECC considered the gas sector’s financial sustainability plan for 2019-20 and directed the Petroleum Division to request Ogra for determination of the revenue requirement of SNGPL and SSGC for the year and revision in gas prices in view of their revenue shortfall effective July 1, 2019.

PARIS: France has decided to freeze the assets of Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) founder Masood Azhar, the French government said on Friday.

A joint statement issued by the French interior ministry, finance ministry and foreign ministry added that France would discuss putting Masood Azharon a European Union list of people suspected of being involved in terrorism.

Pakistan is under pressure from global powers to act against groups carrying out attacks in India, including Jaish-e-Mohammed, which claimed responsibility for a February 14 attack in Kashmir's Pulwama that killed at least 40 paramilitary personnel.

France's move to freeze Jaish assets comes days after China blocked an UNSC proposal to list Masood Azhar as a global terrorist.

The proposal to designate Azhar under the 1267 al-Qaida Sanctions Committee of the Security Council was moved by France, the UK and the US on February 27, days after a Jaish suicide bomber killed 40 CRPF soldiers in Jammu and Kashmir's Pulwama, leading to a flare-up in tensions between India and Pakistan.

Other than Pulwama, Azhar-led JeM has been involved in several terror attacks in India over nearly two decades.

It was responsible for the attack on Indian Parliament on December 13, 2001 in which nine security personnel and officials were killed.

In January, 2016, a heavily armed group of JeM attacked the Pathankot airbase in which seven security personnel were killed. The terror group also carried out the attack on Uri brigade headquarters in September 2016, killing 17 soldiers and injuring 30 others.

WASHINGTON: Pakistanowes its "allweather friend" China at least $10 billion debt for the construction of the Gwadar port and other projects, the top US general has said, as he underlined Beijing's "predatory economics" to expand its global influence.

The strategic Gwadar Port in Balochistan province on the Arabian Sea is being built by China under the multi-billion China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) and is considered to be a link between Beijing's ambitious One Belt, One Road (OBOR) and Maritime Silk Road projects.

"Let us look at just a few examples. Saddled with predatory Chinese loans, Sri Lanka granted China a 99-year lease and 70 per cent stake in its deep-water port," General Joseph Dunford, Chairman of US Joint Chiefs of Staff, told a Senate Armed Services Committee on Thursday.

The Maldives owes China roughly $1.5 billion in debt - about 30 per cent of its GDP - for construction costs, he said.

"Pakistan owes China at least $10 billion in debt for the construction of Gwadar Port and other projects," Dunford said.

"China is diligently building an international network of coercion through predatory economics to expand its sphere of influence," he said, adding that nations around the globe are discovering the hard way that China's economic "friendship" via OBOR can come at "a steep cost" when promises of investment go unfulfilled and international standards and safeguards are ignored.

In Africa, Djibouti owes China over 80 per cent of its GDP and in 2017, the country became host to China's first overseas military base. In Latin America, Ecuador agreed to sell 80 to 90 per cent of its exportable crude oil to China through 2024 in exchange for $6.5 billion in Chinese loans, he said.

And after leasing land tax-free to China for 50 years, Argentina is denied access and oversight to a Chinese satellite tracking station on its sovereign territory, unwittingly allowing the facility's use for military purposes, the US general said.

Dunford warned that if China's predatory debt tactics are left unaddressed, they will have serious implications on the US's military.

Alleging that China is extending its reach by increasing its overt military and coercive activities through its neighbours, Dunford said China's increasingly provocative behaviour in the Indo-Pacific, particularly the South China Sea (SCS), should concern all.

Between 2013 and 2018, China increased its air and sea incursions into the SCS twelve-fold. Within those five years, it also increased deployments of offensive and defensive weapons systems to the SCS by the same order of magnitude, he said.

China's land reclamation and militarisation far exceed that of other claimants combined in the South China Sea, he said.

Between 2013 and 2015 alone, China created more than 3,200 acres in the SCS, building features within its self-proclaimed 'nine dash line' - a claim the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague ruled in 2016 has no legal basis, Dunford told the lawmakers.

Dunford also accused China of interfering in the freedom of navigation.

"China habitually threatens this freedom, using both conventional military force projection and 'gray zone' or irregular warfare activities," he said.

Citing an example, he said Chinese military vessels came dangerously close to the USS Decatur, a destroyer of the US Navy, off the coast of the Spratly Islands in the South China Sea.

"China's force projection inside and outside the SCS disrespects and undermines our rules-based international order and threatens regional stability and security," Dunford said

Does JeM have any assets in any French Jurisdiction? Its a nice gesture of European solidarity I guess.. But not much in practical terms. Imposing sanctions on PakMil assets instead of JeM would have had a far greater effect.. Even if there was just a threat of sanctions.. Thank God for small mercies I guess.

sudeepj wrote:Does JeM have any assets in any French Jurisdiction? Its a nice gesture of European solidarity I guess.. But not much in practical terms. Imposing sanctions on PakMil assets instead of JeM would have had a far greater effect.. Even if there was just a threat of sanctions.. Thank God for small mercies I guess.

Pakistan has "surreptitiously usurped" lands belonging to the Kartarpur Sahib gurdwara in the name of developing a corridor for the convenience of pilgrims and objected to most of the Indian proposals for the project, reflecting its "double-speak", officials said on Friday.

"Pakistan has lived up to its old reputation of making false promises, making tall claims and delivering nothing. Its double-speak on the Kartarpur Sahib corridor has been exposed in the first meeting itself at Attari on Thursday," a government official, who attended the meeting, said.

"Against the hype created by the Pakistan government and the Pakistan media, its actual offer during the talks turned out to be farcical and mere tokenism. There is a sea of difference between what Pakistan, including Prime Minister Imran Khan, had announced, and in what they offered at Attari meeting. Clearly, Pakistan is not interested in providing Indian pilgrims easy access to Kartarpur Sahib," the official said.

Despite having assured visa-free passage to Kartarpur Sahib, Pakistan has now brought in, through the back door, the requirement of issuance of special permits by them to pilgrims, that also at a fee, which is "outrageous and defeats" the very purpose of the corridor, the official said.

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has requested the Asian Development Bank (ADB) to approve a $500 million loan in budgetary support before June this year, as it faces difficulties in retaining foreign exchange reserves because of mounting external financing needs.

The request has been made to Werner Liepach, director general for Central and West Asia Department of the ADB, who is on a visit to Pakistan, a top official of the Finance Ministry told The Express Tribune.

The ADB official arrived in Pakistan 12 days before a scheduled visit of the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) new mission chief. Spanish born IMF mission chief is arriving on 26th of this month on his maiden visit to Pakistan, where he will stay for two days.

Pakistan plans to request the IMF to send a staff level mission after the IMF-World Bank spring meetings next month, said a senior Finance Ministry official. If an agreement reached during staff level visit, the government will present the next year’s budget on May 17 to include prior actions of a programme loan

His visit is aimed at finding new avenues for enhancing disbursements of loans to Pakistan and removing bottlenecks that are hindering releases of the previously approved loans.

However, it is unlikely that the Manila-based lending agency would accept the request in absence of a Letter of Comfort from the IMF. Pakistan’s budgetary support remains suspended for last over two years due to deterioration in macroeconomic conditions.

The ADB had approved the last budgetary support programme in June 2017 when it sanctioned $600 million loan for energy sector reforms. Pakistan requested the ADB to approve the $500 million first loan tranche under the Trade and Competitiveness Programme. The total programme size is $800 million but Islamabad wanted that at least $500 million be disbursed before June 30, officials added.

The government has managed to compress imports and ensured double-digit growth in remittances but the measures are still not enough to meet its gross external financing requirements for this fiscal year.

Lately, the UAE also cancelled $3.2 billion oil facility on deferred payments, which affected the government’s plans for this as well as the next two fiscal years. There are also delays in disbursements of commercial loans while the exports have also not yet started picking up.

The officials said the government assured the visiting ADB official that it was working on a reforms package and the agreement with the IMF may also be finalised soon.

However, officials in the Ministry of Commerce and the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) said it would not be easy for the government to meet the prior actions that the ADB had set for approving the $500 million loan. The conditions relate to rationalisation of tariffs, a flexible exchange rate and tax reforms.

The government on Friday extended the last date of filing the tax returns to March 31 – exactly three months after it lapsed. The purpose is to defeat a legal amendment that bars inclusion of those taxpayers who filed their annual tax returns after due date that was December 2018, in the Active Taxpayers List (ATL).

This will allow the FBR to immediately include nearly 69,000 new filers in the ATL, jacking up the total numbers of filers to 1.7 million. The ADB was also asking to strengthen the regulatory framework and operationalisation of the Pak EXIM Bank.

During the meetings, the ADB’s regional director general also highlighted challenges that are delaying disbursements of loans. He urged Pakistan to address land acquisition issues that are hampering disbursements of over $2 billion loans.

Liepach also sought fast track approvals of the PC-Is of the projects, as so far not even one new project is approved by the ADB in this calendar year. The ADB has an indicative ceiling of $2.4 billion for 2019.

The ADB’s official also requested Pakistan to clear draft framework agreement on Transaction Advisory Services for preparing, structuring, procuring and implementing PPP projects in Pakistan.

However, Pakistan has concerns over the draft agreement, as it would result into payments of 1.5% of fees to the ADB on loans even raised from the domestic markets. Pakistan has asked the ADB to exclude the conditions related to payment of success fee and other charges to ADB, the ministry officials added.

Both the sides also discussed the Country Operations Business Plan for 2019 and 2021. The proposed resource allocation for the next three years is around $7.5 billion.

But the disbursements would depend upon a Letter of Comfort by the IMF for budgetary loans and removal of administrative bottlenecks for disbursements of project loans.

Due to the factors, the overall foreign loans disbursements – by all international creditors in the first eight months of the fiscal year – amount to only $2.3 billion, which is lower than the last year’s level.

Both the sides also discussed the issue of slow disbursements by the ADB against the target of $1.3 billion for this fiscal year. During the first eight months of this fiscal year, the ADB disbursed only $420 million, according to the EAD statistics.

The officials said the ADB official also raised the issue of chronic circular debt that has touched Rs1.6 trillion. The government assured the DG that it would clear the circular debt and has already raised Rs200 billion through domestic Sukuk bonds.

Both the sides also discussed the possibility of availing new financial products of the ADB, mainly Special Policy-Based Lending (SPBL) and Countercyclical Support Facility (CSF).

What happen to Afia? As per paki talk show pandits and mainly Orya maqbool Jan said that she is coming to pakistan on 16 March. As per him it is done deal by Taliban as one of the condition for talk with Uncle.

BEIJING: China said on Friday it was willing to have more discussions with all parties concerned, including India, on blacklisting the head of Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM), which claimed responsibility for the attack on an Indian paramilitary convoy in held Kashmir in February.

India said it was disappointed at the block, while the United States said it was counter to a goal it shared with China of achieving regional peace and stability.

In a statement faxed to Reuters late on Friday, China’s Foreign Ministry reiterated that the “technical hold” on the blacklisting was to give more time for the committee to have further consultations on the issue.

China hoped the committee’s actions could “benefit reducing the tense situation and protect regional stability”, the ministry said, responding to a question about calls for boycott of Chinese products in India.

“China is willing to strengthen communication with all parties, including India, to appropriately handle this issue,” it added, without elaborating.

The US, Britain and France had asked the Security Council’s Islamic State and Al Qaeda sanctions committee to subject Azhar to an arms embargo, travel ban and asset freeze. The 15-member committee operates by consensus. China had previously prevented the sanctions committee from sanctioning Azhar in 2016 and 2017.

Western powers could also blacklist Azhar by adopting a Security Council resolution, which needs nine votes in favour and no vetoes by Russia, China, the United States, Britain or France. Already blacklisted by the UN Security Council in 2001, JeM is a primarily anti-India group.

THE Special Committee of the Senate on the China Pakistan Economic Corridor has raised the demand for greater transparency in the execution of work under CPEC.

The government would be well advised to heed its words. The chair of the committee, Senator Sherry Rehman, said that her committee gets more information from the media than it does from the government, a state of affairs that is entirely unacceptable.

The ruling party, while it was in opposition under the previous government, used to regularly join in the chorus of demands for greater transparency on CPEC, and its representatives in parliament used to make the same demands at the time.

Now when they are in power they seem to have reverted to the same practice as their predecessor of keeping the country in the dark as large-scale work progresses under the CPEC banner.

Only last week, for example, Planning Minister Khusro Bakhtiar announced a series of decisions taken by the cabinet committee on CPEC from which it was quite evident that major changes will be made to Pakistan’s policy environment in order to take the corridor project forward.

He mentioned that a series of projects in agriculture, education, health, poverty alleviation, water supply and vocational training is about to be finalised and will be shared with Chinese counterparts soon.

Apparently, Chinese experts have been consulted extensively in drawing up this list. Sadly though, Pakistan’s own parliament remains unaware of what is being planned and how the projects will be paid for.

In addition, the minister also revealed that plans to shift the financing of the massive railway up-gradation project known as ML1, which is the largest under the CPEC umbrella at $8.2bn, have gone back to where the previous government had left them.

The then PML-N government intended to finance the project through a Chinese grant which would be repaid with interest from the government of Pakistan’s resources. The PTI, upon coming to power, said it would like to renegotiate these terms to Build-Operate-Transfer instead, so that the repayment burden does not fall on the government and the Chinese can be asked to finance the project with their resources and recover their investment by operating the railway line themselves for a specified period of time.

It seems like the Chinese have refused this offer. Naturally, the government now has to consider the terms of repayment carefully, given the size of the project, and figure out how to manage them at a time when it is going to the IMF for balance-of-payments support.

Under an IMF programme, the government’s economic priority would be to build foreign-exchange reserves and narrow the fiscal deficit, which could become a challenge if massive projects are launched with borrowed money.

The Senate committee is right to emphasise its stake in the enterprise, and the government should move to allay its concerns.

In the aftermath of the Pulwama episode, Kashmir-centric militant group Jaish-e-Mohammad has been making headlines internationally, as the suicide bomber involved in the attack claimed to be a member of the outfit.

This has led India to call for action against the group, particularly against its head Masood Azhar. While India has been thirsting for revenge in the post-Pulwama period, its efforts to blacklist the Jaish and its chief are not altogether altruistic. Delhi has made an all-out effort to prevent the Kashmir issue from being internationalised, and is presenting itself as a victim of ‘terrorism’ to take the focus of the international community away from its brutal tactics in the held region. Indeed, all of Pakistan’s attempts at talks or acting on CBMs have been held back by the Modi regime’s single-point agenda — to portray Pakistan as a hub of jihadi activity.

However, away from the Indian stance, there is still a case to be made for Pakistan’s clamping down further on the Jaish and others of its ilk — for its own security.

The dangers of the path adopted by the Jaish are clear. Masood Azhar’s aim was to blur the distinction between pro-Kashmir jihadi groups and those subscribing to sectarian militancy within Pakistan.

When Gen Musharraf proscribed the Jaish, he was targeted by the group, barely escaping two attempts on his life.

The attempt to rein in the Jaish’s activities caused a large section of the group to join hands with the TTP to attack the state and religious minorities.

Attempts to de-radicalise militants also did not work, and it became clear that the danger of reprisals notwithstanding, stern action was necessary against all militants — whether they were allegedly using Pakistani soil to plan attacks outside the country, or killing and maiming thousands within the country. Indeed, Pakistan should have learnt a lesson from the Americans who encouraged jihadi elements in Afghanistan, only to be confronted by a monster of their own creation in later years.

Given this backdrop, many observers have emphasised the need to crack down hard on all such groups in Pakistan. Most have been banned but much more is required to ensure that they are eliminated and never come back to life.

If the world wants to blacklist Masood Azhar, there should be no hesitation on Pakistan’s part. Neither should China use ‘technical reasons’ to block such a move.

There are no ‘good’ or ‘bad’ militants groups; all have either caused or are capable of wreaking havoc in the country. That outlook is hopefully a thing of the past now, as the prime minister has promised that no groups will be allowed to use Pakistani territory for militant activities. He must make good on that pledge. This is the only way Pakistan will regain the respect of the international community, and counter India’s constant campaign to isolate it.

KARACHI: The Pakistan Cricket Boardhas paid theBCCIapproximately $1.6 million as compensation after losing the case it filed against the Indian Board for allegedly not honouring a bilateral agreement,PCB Chairman Ehsan Mani claimed on Monday.

The PCB had filed a compensation case against the BCCI last year before the ICC's Dispute Resolution Committee, demanding around $70 million. The ICC dismissed it and asked the PCB to compensate the legal cost to the BCCI. "We incurred cost of around $2.2 million on the compensation case which we lost," Mani said.

"The ICC committee did accept that Pakistan had a case and that is why the damages/cost we had to pay to the Indian board was around $1.6 million," Mani said.

Mani insisted that besides the amount paid to India to cover the legal cost, the other expenses were related to legal fees and travelling.

According to the PCB, the agreement with India, which it claimed was a binding Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), ensured Pakistan six bilateral series between 2015 and 2023. Pakistan said the BCCI reneged on the commitment, causing it losses running into millions of dollars.

The Indian Cricket Board, however, maintained that the discussion with PCB was a proposal and never a legally binding MoU. Ultimately, the BCCI's assertion was accepted by the ICC's dispute resolution committee.

My parents’ gardener has six children — all aged eight or younger. While his wife is busy taking care of the youngest ones, barely 15 months and two months old, he brings the other kids along with him so they don’t wander in the streets. As I look at the supposedly eight-year-old girl with a dupatta wrapped around her head, looking tiny, probably stunted, suddenly I realise how pervasive all the statistics Yoon and I have been working are — right there, staring at us in our face. The 38 per cent stunting rate for the population, the fertility rate of 3.6 births per woman, the 22.6 million children out of school, the dismal learning outcomes for students, these are all here manifested in this family and its future.